Crude oil prices rose by more than 1%, at the end of today’s trading, Friday, March 10 (2023), after a volatile session, with the decline of the US dollar, but it recorded weekly losses.
Drilling rigs drilling for oil in the United States decreased by two rigs, bringing the total to 590 rigs, according to Baker Hughes data.
Oil prices fell during trading, due to fears of the possibility of sharp increases in interest rates in the United States. This leads to slower growth and damage to the demand for oil.
Crude oil prices today
At the end of the session, the prices of benchmark Brent crude futures – for May 2023 delivery – rose by about 1.45%, to reach $82.78 a barrel.
The price of US West Texas crude futures – for April 2023 delivery – rose by 1.3%, to $76.68 a barrel, according to data seen by the specialized energy platform.
Crude oil prices ended their trading, yesterday, Thursday, March 9, down by more than 1%, after a volatile session, amid fears of an economic recession that threatens demand.
Economic recession
Expectations of raising interest rates in the largest economy in the world and in Europe clouded global growth expectations, and pushed both benchmarks (Brent and West Texas Intermediate) down by 3.5% and 3.8%, respectively, during the week ending today.
US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell warned against raising interest rates further and possibly faster, saying the Fed was wrong to initially believe inflation was “temporary” and was surprised by the strength of the labor market.
The job market is still seen as tight, even after the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits increased by more than 5 months last week.
“Investors are becoming more cautious,” analysts from Haitong Futures said in a note.
According to data released today, the US economy added 311,000 jobs in February, more than analysts’ expectations of 224,000.
On the other hand, the unemployment rate in the United States rose to 3.6% during the past month, compared to 3.4% in January 2023.
oil supplies
On the supply side, the US in particular urged some commodity traders to undo concerns about shipping priced Russian oil in an effort to shore up supplies; Which indicates that more Russian crude may flow into the market.
Investors are closely watching export cuts from Russia, which decided to cut oil production by 500,000 barrels per day in March.
Russia also plans to reduce oil exports and transit from its western ports in March by 10% on a daily basis compared to shipments in February.
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